1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a ballast housing for display lighting assemblies.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many lighting fixtures exist today that include a ballast to drive high intensity discharge lamps, such as metal halide lamps and others. These ballasts are typically not attractive and are enclosed within a housing. The ballast, however, generates considerable heat which needs to be dissipated to ensure a longer life for these electronic components.
One of these applications involve the use of high intensity lamp fixtures in jewelry displays. Intense lights are desirable to enhance the qualities of the jewelry pieces on display. However, the heat dissipated not infrequently is transmitted to the display surroundings bothering customers when they lean on areas exposed to the heat generated by the ballast and sometimes even get burned.
The present invention resolves this problem by providing a housing that facilitates the heat transfer from the ballast to the housing that includes heat sinks on its external surface. Additionally, the configuration of the housing promotes heat transfer to the surrounding atmosphere by convection. Finally, the present invention permits a user to direct most of the heat transfer to one of the two walls in a housing depending on the particular conditions, including the availability of air conditioning outlets.